Courses & Seminars
The program trains students to analyze a firm's response to its environment and its competitors. It combines strong theory development with rigorous empirical methods to develop cutting-edge research on important questions in business strategy. Ph.D. candidates complete a series of core classes that introduce students to the core fields in strategic management and frontier research in a number of different fields, including competitive strategy, innovation, intellectual property, non-market strategy, global strategy, organization theory, entrepreneurship and market institutions. Students work with our faculty from the beginning of the program to learn how to conduct strong and impactful research. Students often choose to integrate strategic management with other disciplines, such as finance, entrepreneurship, technology management, political science, psychology and sociology.
Our program is differentiated from other top Ph.D. programs in a number of ways. The faculty expertise spans a broad theoretical base - encompassing economics, psychology, sociology, political science and statistics - with an inclination toward strong training in methods. We believe that this combination is required to produce well-trained students who will be able to grow intellectually over the course of their careers and, more immediately, obtain an academic appointment at a top business school. This allows students to select a level of analysis for their dissertation that conforms to their interests and strengths while also allowing them to conduct research on the cutting edge of interesting questions in strategy.
Examples of areas students can specialize are the following:
- Competitive strategy
- Innovation and entrepreneurship
- Behavioral and human resources strategy
- Non-market strategy and corporate social responsibility
Faculty mentors will be assigned when students enter the program, and students will work closely with faculty members in your specialization from the early stage of their program.
Core Classes
Development Policy
A, B and C
Industrial Organization
Third Year
The third year of the program involves independent study and research supervised by a faculty adviser and culminating in a research paper. The final stages of the Ph.D. program are focused on crafting and defending an independent research proposal before a faculty committee nominated by the student. This proposal forms the basis for the student's dissertation. We expect students to complete the program within five years.
Seminars
Faculty Seminars
UCLA Anderson has an active faculty seminar series which are open to the public. Distinguished researchers from other universities present recent work. The Strategy area hosts several of these colloquia each term. For a list of past and future speakers, click here.
Student-run Seminars
Our student-run seminars exist exclusively for Anderson and Strategy Ph.D. students. They present their current research and receive feedback. With no faculty in attendance, your peers critique your work and become invaluable, supportive colleagues and friends in the process.
Job Market Papers
These seminars provide the opportunity to defend your work, receive research and career feedback, and influence others’ work lives. With the toughest audiences you will ever face, this experience is all about preparing you for your professional life and positioning you for candidacy as a faculty member at one of the world’s highest caliber institutions.